Company (continued)

    I love quotes and I absolutely love to share uplifting quotes.  Yesterday, my buddy Steve Brownie-Blue-Shaft wrote me a nice email with this great one.  The author is unknown, but feel free to chime in if you think you know who said it first... "Setbacks pave the way for comebacks."  Belie dat. 

     Well, I planned on following up last week's "In Good Company" post with a few additional thoughts, but I had to give the computer and my eyes a rest once the nausea set in.  I'm really looking forward to getting off the percocets because I've had a migraine-ish headache for a week. I've been dancing a fine line between over and under medicating as the pain takes turns between my ankle, my stomach, my back, and my head. At the moment I'm feeling a bit better, and wanted to share the rest of my thoughts regarding "Company."

    My "company" consists of my family and friends, and I'm unbelievably fortunate to have such a caring and compassionate group by my side.  No matter what venture or challenge I've taken on in the past my company has been there for me to give me unwavering strength and support.  Now, I know that seems like a trite expression that people tend to say at weddings.  However, over the years I've really come to understand it, appreciate it,  and mean it.  I've come to realize how lucky I am to have the company that I keep because they've given me the courage to carry on, and the confidence to succeed.

    Tomorrow (and every day), I challenge you to be mindful and be GOOD COMPANY!  Be supportive of a friend in need; be a listener, and motivator, and an enabler... not a DREAM KILLER.  Alternatively, don't let someone else's rainy day stop you from doing something you WANT to do; don't let someone else's negativity prevent you from living YOUR dream.  Stay positive, and remember to say thanks to your company!   

In good COMPANY!

     A family friend made a comment to my sister that, "rupturing your achilles tendon is the kind of injury that only happens to people who go hard all the time!"  Well obviously I liked the sound of that and had to use it again.  

     Yesterday was a really tough day after the local nerve block wore off and intense pain came on quicker than the percs could go to work.  I literally haven't moved in over a day after trying to get up to go to the bathroom yesterday. Standing upright and moving my foot below my heart caused an inexplicably painful and dangerous level of blood pressure to the wound that I'm not willing to try again.  I've resorted to hitting the bottle and am very thankful for those family members brave enough to help with the emptying. The pain has been more bearable today, but I'm still unable to get up at this point. Since injuring my achilles I've been told that I'm in good company, so I decided to see who else goes hard all the time!  

      In the last few days I have heard the name KOBE mentioned quite a bit. For those of you who don't already know, Kobe Bryant, of the L.A. Lakers, tore his achilles tendon on April 12th (15 days prior to my injury).  Naturally, I've been challenged to "beat Kobe back" and naturally I've accepted the challenge and am ready to compete.  For the record, I got surgery 17 days after Kobe so he has a two and a half week head start. However, chances are that Kobe doesn't know who he is up against (or that he's even in a competition) so I have the advantage there.

     I was even more excited to recall two other famous Achilles'(es?) that tore.  In an amazing coincidence, the two studs that I've always interchangeably used to answer the question, "if you could be any celebrity in the world... who would you be?" have matching scars.  That's right! My man David Beckham and my boy Brad Pitt have both ruptured their achilles tendons. So, for me I guess it was just fate. Becks went down on the pitch while B-Rad ironically went down while filming the movie Troy and playing the character of Achilles... I couldn't make this up!

     Representing the women... Kim Wyant a famous U.S. women's soccer goalkeeper (recently inducted into the Long Island Soccer Player Hall of Fame alongside my father, Shep Messing, and Chris Armas) tore her achilles tendon twice, and was quick to send her well wishes to me.  Former professional beach volley ball player and three-time Olympic gold medalist Misty May-Treanor ruptured her achilles while competing on Dancing with the Stars in 2008. Side note... she recovered in time to win Gold this past summer in England!  And here's an even more extensive running list of celebs with matching scars!

    What kind of COMPANY do you keep?   

Have you hugged your doctor today?

     Thank goodness there are still so many brilliant people willing to sacrifice an immense amount of time, effort, and money to go to med school (seemingly for-EVER).  These truly special people courageously follow their dreams, and devote their lives to improving the lives of others. So, for all of you amazing doctors, nurses, PA's, health care professionals, etc... please give yourself a giant hug... from me.  

     Special thanks to Dr. Drakos and his entire team at the Hospital For Special Surgery Hand and Foot Center (the Achilles Ritz).  Though I wouldn't suggest you find a reason to have to check in there... the HSS Hand and Foot Center is like the Ritz Carlton of hospitals and orthopedic surgery.  It wasn't exactly the Ritz Carlton San Juan where I would have been headed, but I was really comfortable and I was treated like royalty from the time I arrived to the time I left.  Everyone was extremely kind and caring, and the level of professionalism was world class!

 

 

     My surgery went extremely well, and Dr. Drakos was even able to use my plantaris tendon to help reinforce the repair of the Achilles (extra credit and further learning).  I was in recovery for a while sleeping. Then, after the sedation wore off, I ate a relatively delicious meal, took a procedural pee I was released and on my way.  When I got home I enjoyed a great dinner from Mama Theresa's!  I had a really easy first night sleeping on the couch because the anesthetic block the docs put below my knee were still keeping everything numb. 

     I was spoiled by a pain free and productive morning feeling like I could do anything. I cancelled my flight to San Juan; spent an hour on the phone with NY State regarding my summer youth lacrosse camp (...join the PAC!); and I learned from reading and watching tv.  I also had a really nice visit from my loving niece Tess who was a little nervous about the dressing on my foot, but still had the heart to sit and cuddle with Uncle Pete... it made my day.  She even came back later dressed as a fairy princess to put magic healing on my foot!  Next, I witnessed a surprise shout out to Coquette on Fox 5's Good Day New York which I thought was really cool(see pictures). Finally, I also caught an inspiring news story about, Mikey Stolzenberg, a remarkable young lacrosse player in Florida who still competes in sports despite being a quadrilateral amputee.  He is currently raising money for the victims of the Boston Marathon bombing and inspiring them to keep up hope.  His message is for those who were injured to continue following their dreams despite the devastating life changes and hardship they've endured (follow Mikey's story and donate for Boston).  

    Thanks very much to the Doherty family (Erin, Dan, and Mary) who sent me a beautiful gift from Edible Arrangements. It came in perfect time as the numbness in my foot wore off and I had to eat something before firing up the pain killers. I'm struggling a bit right now, and hoping the percocets kick in soon.  With that said I want to remind everyone how serious and dangerous misuse and/or abuse of these substances can be.  So, if someone you know or love might be casually misusing pain-killers... get them help possibly here.  

     I hope you've enjoyed this smorgasbord of an update and pictures today.  There is inspiration and goodness to be found everywhere. Sometimes you just have to be open to it, watching tv during the day, OR just keeping up with my blog! 

    

Decisions, Surprises, Obstacles, Plans, Perspective and Opportunities

     For many years I struggled with making a decision between choosing security and stability versus freedom and opportunity.  This difficult decision is one that we all face and battle with at some point.  For me it manifested as a question of staying in finance with a salary, benefits, bonus, etc. versus leaving to pursue my passion in fitness and wellness.  By now you know I decided to give myself the gift of freedom, but my decision was drawn out for many reasons... one of which was the following question, "What does a fitness professional do if they get injured and can't be on their feet or physical at all?"  Well, we're about to find out.

     On Saturday, April 27th I was playing in the Woodstick Classic Alumni Lacrosse Game between the old guys from storied rival schools Garden City and Manhasset.  I was really excited to play as the annual game represents many great things for me.  I had the opportunity to help raise money for a good cause and to honor a great man while playing the sport I love and competing! I felt a bit tight before the game so I spent time warming up and stretching.  Then five minutes into the game I found myself running out to help my teammate who was getting pressured from a few Manhasset players.  As I casually strode upfield to receive the pass... BANG.  I felt like I was shot in the back of the foot.  In the split seconds it took me to hit the ground I prayed that I'd been slashed by a trailing defender, but I knew there was no one around.  I ignored what was immediately obvious to me, and pretended I could run off the field.  However, I looked down and saw my foot dangling before I fell again. Surprise! Two friends (players from each team) quickly picked me up and carried me off.  I was humbled by the moment as I immediately felt helpless but thankful.  Doctors have since confirmed what I knew had happened.  I ruptured/completely tore my Achilles tendon.

     So after missing my dear friend's wedding that Saturday night (Congratulations Ali and Justin Dillon!), and after cancelling my long awaited trip to San Juan, PR with my beautiful and very understanding girlfriend, Laura (to have left this coming Friday) ... I'm going to have to face a number of new obstacles.  The new obstacles are many including being bedridden with my foot up for two weeks; a cast and crutches for two months; six months of rehab and recovery; and an entire year before I'm back to full strength.  Those are the physical challenges.  The greater challenge will be re-creating myself a fitness and wellness professional who can't walk, drive, train clients, or give lacrosse lessons.  I'm refocusing the plans which are centered around maintaining a positive attitude, learning from this experience, and sharing my thoughts and hopefully inspiration with you as I deal with this challenge.  

     I'm tempted to feel sorry for myself at times because this doesn't seem fair, BUT I WILL NOT DWELL on the negatives.  I don't expect anyone to feel sorry for me, and I know very well that things could be A LOT worse.  The horrific tragedies of this past month especially have brought immeasurable pain and suffering to hundreds and thousands of innocent people and their families.  Those people directly affected by the events in Boston, Texas, China, and the Philippines, to name a few, suffered far greater in an instant (and eternally) than most of us ever will.  These tragedies really help put into perspective for me how insignificant my heartache and challenges are.  A few other amazing things have helped me keep things in perspective.  One, the fact that I was injured playing in a game held to raise money for the Cohen Children's Medical Center (donate to Monster's Kids) in memory of Ryan Kohart (donate to Scholarship Fund).  The young children who I was playing for face tougher challenges on a daily basis. Ryan Kohart perished on September 11, 2001 tragically leaving behind family and friends before getting the chance to live his adult life.  Two, shortly after I got home I received a random text from "Papa Stoff" saying that he was just thinking about me and wanted to wish me well (he had no idea I was hurt).  My friend Matt Stoffel died in a drunk driving accident in 2005 (To donate specify "other" and describe "Matt Stoffel Scholarship Fund). Papa Stoff and his wife Pat have been unbelievable pillars of strength through this hardship.  Finally, my friend Mike stopped by the house to see me.  He brought me a shirt he had just purchased.  The shirt gave tribute to Welles Crowther, "The Man in the Red Bandana" who sacrificed his own life in order to save at least a dozen people before the South Tower collapsed on September 11th (donate to honor Welles).  The memory of these people and events were very powerful reminders that my injury would be a very minor hurdle in the grand scheme of things.

     I'm finishing up this post from my hospital bed and heading in for surgery to repair the Achilles in five minutes. I'm excited to get through this and to start the recovery process so I can begin to embrace ALL the new opportunities this experience will bring to the forefront.  Stay positive and stay tuned!  

The Comeback...

     I'm baaaaack!  I hope you are enjoying the warmer weather, and excited for the pending summer.  I've re-committed to sharing on my blog, and I hope you enjoy my stories, thoughts, honesty and point of view.  Though I like to think I play by my own rules I am a fairly new blogger so I welcome any comments, questions, or suggestions that you may have to improve "our" experience.  Here we go!